A RARE CLOISONNE ENAMEL BOX AND COVER MING DYNASTY, 15TH/16TH CENTURY

of circular form, the cover decorated to the centre with two figures on the terrace of a pavilion, admiring the mountainous landscape encircled by clouds in the background, and gushing waves and a rocky outcrop below, all within a sloping border of red and yellow ground floral quatrefoil panels separated by detached florets, repeated in a band around the sides, the box similarly carved

There are some areas of repair to the enamel just below the top surface at 11o'clock (3.5cm by 3mm), 5o'clock (2.5cm by 2mm) and 8o'clock (1.5cm by 2mm) and another area just below this at 9o'clock (2cm by 3mm) and to some areas to the bottom edge of the base. There are also some surface scratches to the upper surface and the underside of the base.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

Rare for the figural landscape scene adorning the cover, which is boldly rendered in blocks of red, turquoise and green, this box appears to have been influenced by woodblock prints of the Ming dynasty. Woodblock prints depicting scenes from popular novels and reproductions of paintings saw a marked expansion of the decorative repertoire of craftsmen. The classic motifs, such as bird, flower or animal designs, were produced alongside an increasing number of wares decorated with landscape scenes inhabited by figures and across a variety of media, particularly carved lacquer. In shape and design, this box appears to have been inspired by carved lacquer and porcelain circular boxes which were frequently adorned with such scenes and floral cartouches on the sides. However, it is unusual as the scene does not include the intricate carved diaper grounds of lacquer that were generally copied using wire cloisons.

No other box of this type appears to have been published although a wristrest decorated in a related style, with figures in a pavilion courtyard rendered in blocks of colour, attributed to the 17th century, from the collections of Mrs Walter Sedgwick and Pierre Uldry, was included in the exhibition Chinesisches Cloisonne. Die Sammlung Pierre Uldry, Museum Reitberg, Zurich, 1985, cat. no. 174, together with a table screen, depicting a figure in a landscape setting with similarly rendered clouds, cat no. 170. A box of related form, attributed to the early Ming dynasty and illustrating a leafy peony bloom surrounded by a wider and more exaggerated sloping grapevine border, from the collection of David David-Weill and now in Les Arts Decoratifs-musee des Arts decoratifs, Paris, is published in Beatrice Quette (ed.), Cloisonné. Chinese Enamels from the Yuan, Ming, and Qing Dynasties, New York, 2011, p. 36, fig. 3.10.